


One Heart, One Soul, One Flesh

by secondalto



Series: Written in Flesh and Blood [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, The Author Regrets Nothing, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-26
Updated: 2014-06-26
Packaged: 2018-02-06 06:44:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1848310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/secondalto/pseuds/secondalto
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The search for Bucky is on. Will Steve find him and bring him home?</p>
            </blockquote>





	One Heart, One Soul, One Flesh

**Author's Note:**

> With thanks as always to my own platonic soul mate, Rainne. I'm with her 'til the end of the line.
> 
> Also, many, many thanks to everyone who has bookmarked, left kudos and left comments. I am overwhelmed by the response to this series. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

People in polyamorous relationships have many different stories about how they got their marks. The marks can come all at once or at different times and not everyone in the relationships will have each other’s marks.

For example: Person A will get B, Person B will get A, then years later both A and B will get Person C and Person C will have A and B. Or perhaps A will have B, but B will have C and C will have A and B. The possibilities become more complicated as more people are added to the relationship.

*~*~*~*

Darcy is startled awake by both the pain in her left shoulder and by Steve’s answering shout. She knows he has nightmares, has even helped him talk through some of them, but this is different.

“Steve! FUCK OW that HURTS,” she shouts, sitting up next to him in the hospital bed. Thanks to a call to Pepper, Steve has been moved into a private room and given a bigger bed, no questions asked. So Darcy is curled up next to him when the pain came.

“Darce? Fuck, what the hell?” Steve sits up, hand going to his left shoulder blade and arm.

‘Hold on, hold on.” She scrambles out of the bed, going for the light. She’s taking her shirt off as she walks back to the bed. There is a name on her left shoulder that wasn’t there before. She can’t quite make it out. “What the fuck?”

Steve has his hospital gown undone and is trying to look at his own shoulder, but he turns to her. “Darcy, is that…?” He reaches for her. She moves closer, letting him trace the new name.

“Well, don’t leave me hanging.”

He looks up at her, eyes bright and reverent. “It’s Bucky. You have his name. In the shape of a star, like the one he had on the metal arm. Is mine…?” He turns so she can see.

The new mark is the mirror image of the other. Bucky’s name flows down his left shoulder and arm like a wing. Darcy imagines that with both their names on his skin, he can fly now.

“God, it’s beautiful, Steve.” She reaches for her phone, which is lying on the bedside table. She snaps a picture and shows it to him. “It’s Bucky.”

“Darce… I… he remembers. Whatever they did to him, it must have faded or something. I wonder if he has our names.”

She sits back on the bed, letting him draw her to him. They caress the new marks and the old ones. She can feel his urge to get out of there and go look for their soul mate, but it will be a few days before he can leave the hospital. Even the super healing can’t compete with four bullet wounds.

“You’re going nowhere until the doctor clears you, do you understand?” She gives him a stern look, but he just smiles and kisses her softly.

“I understand,” he says. “But I’m gonna find him, Darce. I’ll bring him back home.”

Most of what she knows about Bucky comes from Steve, but if everything he’s told her is true, she really wants to know the man whose name now adorns her other shoulder. Plus, she’s always kind of had a thing for reformed bad boys.

*~*~*~*

He doesn’t get far when he realizes the arm is going to hamper international travel. He got as far as Raleigh before he even thought about leaving the country. The memories plague him, bits and pieces that have no context, images that spark more memories all coming and going. He manages to ignore them, mostly, letting them wash over him as he travels.

The most persistent ones are of the man, Steve, calling him Bucky. He is not Bucky. He vaguely remembers someone calling him James, and he decides that he will use that for now. It’s better than having no name at all. He finds HYDRA bolt holes to sleep in at night. Most of them haven’t been discovered yet. They provide him with clothes, money, and food. There’s one in Boston that has blank documents, he uses those to make a new identity. For now he is James Clark, from Nebraska.

James Clark has thousands of dollars in cash, several credit cards in the names of HYDRA holding companies, and the locations of other secret hideouts around the world. He can go anywhere he wants to, disappear, if only for a while. The man, Steve, will find him. It is kind of hard to completely disappear when you have a metal arm. He makes some calls and books a private jet to France. He can start there; he’s pretty sure he knows the language. The chase is on.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“How are you going to start?” Darcy asks, watching as Steve gets dressed. The doctors have finally agreed to let him go home. She watches from a chair as he covers his wings, the names on his shoulders. It takes her breath away, the way they move and flex with his body.

“Natasha,” he says, turning to look at her. “She called, said she was bringing me some files. Everything about HYDRA is out there. We have the locations of all their hideaways. Bucky won’t be able to stay hidden; he’ll keep running.”

“So you’re gonna go running after him. Will you call me?” she asks, staring down at her hands.

He’s kneeling down in front of her, taking her face in his hands. “Always. You’re my anchor, Darce. I need you here, safe, so I can bring him back to be with us.”

“But what about… everything? What they did to him?”

“We’ll figure it out, somehow.” He presses a soft kiss to her lips, stroking her shoulders, where the names are. She shivers under his touch, pulling him closer to her.

“Ahem, can we put a hold on that for now?” Steve pulls back, looking behind Darcy. Darcy turns to see Natasha standing in the doorway.

“Nat, what did you find?” Steve asks, standing up and moving closer.  Natasha hands him two folders.

“The first one is something the KGB had, I called in some big favors to get it. The second is a list of the known HYDRA bolt holes. He might go to some of those for access to money, clothes, and other things.”

Darcy stands to look over Steve’s arms at the contents of the first folder. Everything is in Russian, but the picture on the inside of the front cover is enough to make her stomach roil. It’s Bucky, his face peering from a round window that is covered in frost.

Steve looks up. “Did they freeze him? What else did they do? I can’t read this.”

“Yes, cryostasis between missions. That’s why he doesn’t look like he’s aged much since his fall,” Natasha says. “They also seem to have used some form of electroshock therapy, possibly combined with psychotropic drugs, to wipe his memory. That’s why he didn’t know you.”

“God,” Steve breathes, holding onto his stomach. “What else?”

“There is a list of his missions, the people he killed, and the things they programmed him to be able to do. Steve,” she begins, taking a breath before pointing to the folder. “I know this man.”

Darcy looks up. “How?”

“When I encountered the Winter Soldier, he was wearing the mask and goggles. I didn’t see him unmasked on the street when we fought. But that man,” she points to the folder again. “I met him, when I was younger.”

“Tell me,” Steve pleads. “I want to know.”

“I was still… the Red Room. It was for a mission. He didn’t have a name, so I called him Yasha. He was intrigued by soul marks, not having one himself. He helped in my training. I had… a crush. I fancied myself in love with him.” She fiddles with her necklace as she recounts her memory. Darcy wants to hug her.

“I need your help, Nat,” Steve says, closing the folder.

“I can’t go out in the field,” she shakes her head. “I’m too well known now. But I can be there for logistics. There are still people out there who owe me favors.”

“Thank you,” Steve says, nodding. Natasha nods back and leaves the room. He turns to Darcy. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah- I should tell you that everyone’s going to be there,” she says, then frowns. “Well, nearly everyone; Tony couldn’t get a hold of Bruce. Clint is on his way from wherever; Thor and Jane returned two days ago. Tony said he’s got JARVIS trolling surveillance cameras, now that we have a picture to work from. And he’s searching social media for any reports of a man with a metal arm. If Bucky is out there, we’ll find him.”

Steve smiles, hugging her close. “Thank you, Darce. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Drown in the myriad of pop culture references?” she offers.

He laughs, throwing an arm around her.

*~*~*~*~*~*~

France makes some of the memories stronger. They are mostly of war and death; James tries to ignore them. The people are positively giddy that Captain America ( _that’s Steve, he got_ _bigger_ ) has been destroying HYDRA. They have pictures of him everywhere. There are also scattered pictures of _him_ -of the man they call Bucky. He hides under caps and keeps his head down.

The nights are the worst. He has nightmares about what they did to him; about being in the chair, being frozen. He wakes up in a cold sweat, panting hard. He can never get back to sleep. Or if he does, it’s only because he traces the names on the arm with his flesh and blood hand. He remembers the night they appeared. He remembers the tingling on the stump underneath, wonders if maybe the names are there as well.

He can’t be found yet. He isn’t whole. He isn’t a man who deserves to be around someone like Captain America ( _Steve, Stevie_ ). He still isn’t sure who Darcy is, but he’s seen the tabloids. There are pictures of a woman with Cap-Steve. They don’t know her name, they just speculate about the relationship. She’s gorgeous. A brunette with full lips and curves that go on forever. Steve always had a thing for brunettes.

James shakes his head. How does he know this? _We’re lovers, soul mates_ , Steve had said. James isn’t worthy of that love. He’s done things. Those memories are the easiest to access and the ones he wishes he didn’t have. He’s killed. He thinks he could still kill. There are times when he wakes up and doesn’t remember how he got to wherever he is. Whatever they did to him, he’s not free of it yet. He needs to keep going.

*~*~*~*~*~*

They return to the Tower to start out. The rest of the team greets him, smiles and hugs all around, and they welcome Sam with open arms.

“You need back up out there, call, okay?” Tony says, clapping him on the back. “I hate missing out on all the fun.”

“Indeed, friend Steven, I would have gladly aided you in your time of need.” Thor offers him a hand, and Steve clasps it.

“Thanks, to all of you. Has JARVIS found anything yet?” he asks.

“I have been tracing a few leads, Captain Rogers. The last one led me to a former safe house in Raleigh. I have yet to pick up Sergeant Barnes’ trail from there.”

Steve nods. “When you do, let me know?”

“Of course, Captain Rogers. Miss Potts wishes me to inform you that you have access to the Stark Industries jet anytime you need it.”

“I think the jet is a little too conspicuous,” Darcy says. “You’d be better off in a copter.”

“Or I could jump out of it. Take land routes from there,” Steve offers.

Darcy rolls her eyes. “Adrenaline junkie. You’re not going alone are you? You know any one of them will go if you just ask.”

“Sam’s coming. The rest of them are too well known. Even Clint, now that SHIELD’s files are public knowledge.”

“And you aren’t?” she scoffs, giving him a look.

“I can blend,” he says.

Darcy just scoffs again, but lets the topic drop. Two days later he’s kissing her good-bye as one of the Quinjets stands ready to lift off. Clint has shown him the basics of piloting and Tony has connected JARVIS to it in case he needs help.

“Bring him home, but be safe,” she whispers against his lips.

“I will. Keep the bed warm for me.” She’d moved her stuff into his room while he was gone, he wishes he could have enjoyed that more. But Bucky needs to be found. “I’ll call you.”

“You better.” She kisses him again, hard and deep. He lets her go reluctantly, making for the jet.

Sam is smirking at him as he climbs into the pilot’s seat. “Cap’s got game. You sure you don’t wanna postpone this hunting trip any longer?”

“No, I need to find Bucky. Darcy understands.” He flexes his shoulders, imagining the names there moving like the wings they resemble.

“Something changed,” Sam states.

“We got his name.” Steve leaves it at that as they take off.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

He only spends a day in Austria. The mountains trigger a bad memory. It leaves him screaming a name _(STEVE!)_ and trembling. He sees it clearly in his mind now, the fall from the train. The look on the face of the man _(BUCKY!)_ , the sound of the air as he fell, the pain of the impact. He traces at the names furiously, making his fingers bleed. It doesn’t calm him as it usually does.

It has been two weeks since he started running. He needs to change his routine. James decides to skip most of Eastern Europe, choosing Minsk for his next destination. There is something about the city that feels important. There is a café in a square, nice and normal, until he sits down for something to eat. He remembers a girl. A wild and red-headed girl.

She is the woman from the street, the one he shot. Older, more confident, less vivacious, but the same person. She called him Yasha then. She was only making up a name, but it feels… he doesn’t know what he feels. Her name was Natalia; he’d taught her how to use a knife. He wonders who taught her how to be so cold, calculating like she was on the street.

He thinks he will stay here for a while. These are mostly good memories, he wants to have more of those. He thanks the waitress with a flawless accent and sits back in the chair, taking in the weak summer sun. Only she knows about Minsk, will she tell him - Steve? He doesn’t know, but he feels safe for the moment. It is as good a place as any to rest for a while.

*~*~*~*~*~*

A month out finds them in Bucharest. Steve thinks the lead is good; Bucky has family here, distant, but family. His grandfather had come from the old country to America, to find his fortune. Bucky might have memories of stories told by Anton Barnes. Sam is resting in the hotel room, but Steve is buzzing to get out there, to ask questions. He is sitting on a bench drinking really bad coffee when he sees him, or thinks he does. He jumps up and follows the man in the cap with the so-familiar gait.

It’s Bucky. There is a glint of metal from under a glove, and Steve’s heart races. He should call Sam. He should have backup. But he can’t stop to pull out his phone; he needs to follow Bucky. They both weave in and out of the crowds, going deeper into the older part of the city. He thinks he sees Bucky duck in between two buildings and follows. When he gets to the dark passage, he can’t see anything. Where did Bucky go?

He’s slammed into the wall. He’s being choked. His vision blurs and he scrambles to move the hands from his throat. One of them is metal.

“Buck,” he rasps. “Bucky, it’s me, Steve.”

The pressure eases, but the hand stays at his throat. “Steve?”

“It’s me, Buck. I’ve been looking for you. I want you to come with me.”

“No. Can’t. I’m…I’m….” Bucky sounds so broken, so lost. “Not right in the head. Don’t deserve you, can’t be near you. Might hurt you.”

“Bucky, I don’t care. I know people, we can get you help.”

“Who’s Darcy?” The question startles Steve for a moment.

“She’s my girl, she’s… everything. Did you… did you get her name? I got yours back, on my shoulder this time,” Steve tells him, hoping to get through to him. “I can show you a picture of her if you let me pull out my phone.”

Bucky shakes his head. “Seen her. Tabloids don’t know her. She’s… beautiful. I don’t deserve that.”

“You do, Buck. She wants to meet you so bad. I’ve been telling her all about us. She has your name too. We could be happy, like we used to be. I wish you could remember it.” Steve is near tears. He wants nothing more than to wrap his arms around Bucky and never let go. But he knows Bucky could kill him, right here and now.

“I do,” Bucky says, softly. “Some of it. I remember… I remember this.”

The hand is gone, replaced by Bucky’s lips, hot and hard on his pulse. Then Bucky moves to his lips, gripping the back of Steve’s neck as he plunders Steve’s mouth. Steve puts a hand on Bucky’s jaw, feeling the stubble there. He moves against Bucky, writhing against him like he used to. He’s so distracted by desire and need that he almost doesn’t realize Bucky’s gone. His hand is holding air.

“Fuck!” he says, pounding the wall behind him. His phone rings and he digs it out of his pocket. It’s Sam. He flips it open. “Yeah?”

“The fuck you at, Rogers? It’s not like you to just disappear like that.”

“I was… walking. Needed to clear my head.” Sam doesn’t need to know he found Bucky. “What’s up?”

“We gotta go, now. Something happened to your girl,” Sam says projecting a calm that Steve doesn’t feel.

“Darcy? Is she okay?” His heart races, his lungs burn. She has to be all right, he found Bucky and he came so close to bringing him home.

“Barton didn’t say; just said to bring your ass home. Barnes will hold for now.”

“I’ll be there in ten, make sure my bag is ready.” Steve is already running back into the crowds.

“Already done, I’ll meet you out front.”

*~*~*~*~*~

Steve has always known he’s going to live for a very long time. It’s the nature of what was done to him with the serum. Doctor Erskine explained it to him, after telling Steve he wouldn’t be able to get drunk, ever. The way his cells worked to heal him, he wouldn’t age like a normal person, but he would age and eventually die. Given what Zola did to Bucky, it’s possible that he’ll be the same way.

When they land hours after Sam called him, he rushes off to the hospital. Jane and Pepper are there, the former being held by Thor. Pepper looks up, her face stained with tears. She rushes over and hugs him. He holds her there awkwardly.

“Darcy. What happened to Darcy?”

Jane looks up at him. “There was a robbery at the store. She… she may have caused some trouble, trying to keep the men away from the rest of the patrons.”

Of course she did. Pepper untangles herself from him, keeping a hand on his chest. “They apparently struggled with her. She tripped and broke her ankle. It’s bad enough she’s getting a pin put in it. But the doctors say she’ll be fine.”

Steve hears all of this but all he can think is she’s a normal human, fragile and aging. The notion really hits him just then. He’ll have to watch her die. His heart lurches in his chest, but he manages to keep himself steady. He can’t… he won’t…. He’s already suffered through the death of one soul mate, he doesn’t know if he could cope with another. He’d always have Bucky, if he’s found and recovers, but Darcy…. He takes some breaths to steady himself.

He’ll see if she’s okay, make sure she’s fine and then he’ll do the right thing. He’ll break up with her. He’ll move out of the Tower, make sure he doesn’t see her, and make it as clean and painless as possible. He’ll channel all his efforts into finding Bucky. He’ll get through that, so he won’t have the heartache of seeing her name fade from his shoulder, leaving him a broken angel who can’t fly.

The surgeon comes out an hour later, giving everyone the good news: Darcy is going to be just fine. It still takes a few days for her to recover enough to be released.

“Steve, make them let me out of here,” she whines.

“Sure, okay, give me a few minutes.” He leaves her, trying not to think about what he needs to do now.

He gets her out and takes her back to the Tower. He ensconces her on the sofa in the common room. He gets JARVIS to pull up some of her favorites and tucks her into his side. He wants to relish being near her for a little while. It’s during The Princess Bride that he decides to bring the subject up.

“Darce,” he says, holding her closer for a moment.

“Yeah?”

“We need to break up.” There, he’s said it.

She pulls away from him, eyes wide and mouth open. “WHAT? Steve! What the fuck has gotten into you? I love you! You love me! Why would you say something like that?”

“You got hurt.”

“So? I get hurt helping Jane fix her raggedly duct-taped equipment. That doesn’t mean you should break up with me,” she yells. She struggles up off of the couch, hobbling away from him. He can see that she’s near tears; the tone of her voice is strangled and breathy.

“But it could have been worse, Darce,” he says. He does look at her then and instantly regrets it. He goes back to looking at his hands so he can finish saying what he needs to say. “You could have been seriously hurt.  Your picture is in the tabloids now. People know your face, they know you’re with me. It won’t be long before they know your name. You got hurt. You could have died. You are going to die.”

“So are you, idiot,” she replies, shaking with anger.

“Not for a long time. I’m not like you, Darce. The serum changed me. You’re going to get old and die, Darce… I can’t… I’ll be…. I just can’t.” His own voice is ragged now. He’s sitting there stiffly, his whole body aches with the effort to not show her emotions.

“Oh my god! This is such a load of crap. You knew this when we started dating, don’t tell me you didn’t. And you’re just now thinking about this? You want to skip everything we _could_ have because of future heartbreak? You want the heartbreak now, instead of later?  God, Steve…. Love means having to say goodbye. ”

He feels the tear fall down his cheek. “I already did, Darce. I said goodbye - to Peggy, to Bucky. It’s a goddamn miracle he came back into my life. But I can’t…. I won’t say goodbye to you. I love you too damn much, Darcy.”

The room falls silent. The emotions hang there, waiting to fall when someone speaks again.

“Lady Darcy, Brother Steven, what is this that ails you? I heard great shouting from the kitchen and came to see.” Thor enters the room, looking concerned.

Darcy points to Steve. “This idiot wants to break up with me, because he’s going to live longer and doesn’t want to go through the pain of seeing me die.”

Thor seems to think about this for a moment before speaking. “Do you know of Iðunn?”

Steve nods. “She’s a Norse goddess, handed out those apples that gave immortality.”

“No, I don’t want that,” Darcy says immediately, violently shaking her head.

“Fear not, my shield sister, that is not what I was about to propose,” Thor laughs gently.  “It is true that the myths of Midgard say the apples grant immortality, but we are not immortal. Asgardians live far longer than any in the Nine Realms, for thousands of your years. But we do die. When we marry, my Jane will be offered an apple, so that she may reign by my side when I take the throne. She knows this but has not said she will take it. It is my hope that she will.”

Darcy glares, arms crossed and body rigid. “So what? How does that apply to me and Mr. Stupid Idea over there?”

“There is a potion, something derived from the apples by one of our oldest sorcerers. It was made for those of our Realm who fell in love with those from Midgard or the other realms that do not live as long as us. It will not give you the same life span as the apple, but it will extend your life. You may have to take a few doses to live as long as the good Captain. I could obtain it for you should you desire it, Darcy.” Thor looks at her hopefully.

Darcy worries at her lower lip, rocking back and forth. Steve sits on the edge of the couch waiting for her answer. “I’ll think about it,” she says. “Right now, I want to be left alone.” She hobbles out of the room on her crutches, not saying anything to either of the men.

“You were unwise to try and do such a thing, Steven,” Thor says. “Are you not her soul mate?”

“I am, we are,” Steve says. “I thought… I was wrong. I should have talked to her about it instead of just throwing it in her face.”

“Yes, but perhaps now there is hope. You are well suited for each other. And I like you, Steven. I should hate to do you harm for causing Darcy pain.” Thor crosses his arms, glaring at him just a little.

“Thank you, for offering that,” Steve says. “I promise to try and not hurt her like that again. Want to finish watching the movie with me?” He gestures to the screen.

Thor looks over and smiles. “Ah yes! I know this moving picture, Jane has shown it to me. Inigo is a fine warrior, worthy of Valhalla.”  He sits down in the chair next to the couch. They watch the movie companionably, saying the lines along with the characters. Steve really hopes that Darcy will decide to take Thor up on his offer. More than that, though, he’s hoping that she’ll even speak to him after all of this.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Darcy is slowly and awkwardly pacing Steve’s–their–room when he knocks on the door tentatively before peering around the frame to look at her.

“Darcy? Can I…?”

She sighs, moving away from the door to allow him entry. “Come on. I want you to know I’m still mad at you.”

“I know,” he curls in on himself, like he’s trying to make himself smaller. For all that the serum gave him, he’s still the small skinny kid from Brooklyn sometimes.

“Ugh, god, Steve, just… sit down will you?” she points to the bed. He shuffles over, sitting down and looking at the floor. “I can’t believe… how could you not…? UGH!”

“I wasn’t thinking,” he says, his voice soft and low. “I heard something had happened to you and I panicked. When Pepper told me you were having surgery, I… my mind went into overdrive. I’ve just… I’ve been through so much, Darcy.”

“You don’t think I know that? Do you remember how we started?” He nods, face a portrait of sadness and regret.  She glares at him. “I thought maybe, just maybe, you wanted to have everything with me, all the good and the bad things before well… you know. Did it ever register in that thick head of yours that this would have happened with Peggy too?”

He looks up at her, eyes wide. It hadn’t. He reaches out for her. She takes his hand, lets him pull her into an embrace. He buries his head in her neck, breath wafting over her shoulder. His hand drifts up to the mark, to his name. She brushes her fingers over his shoulders, over his marks.

“Darce… god I’m so sorry. I love you so fucking much,” he pleads, his body shuddering under her touch.

“I know. I love you just as much, Steve. And I’m not promising it’s a yes, but when you get Bucky back… we’ll have a talk about Thor’s idea.”

He looks up at her, eyes shining with hope. He moves his hand to her cheek, pulling her in for a kiss. She sighs into it, melting against him. He pulls away slowly, manhandling her into his lap. He smiles at her, gentle and happy.

“I didn’t get a chance to tell you about Bucharest. I found him.”

“You found him?” she asks, excited. “Is he here?”

Steve shakes his head. “He got away.”

“How the fuck did that happen?”

“He kissed me.” Steve ducks his head, cheeks flushing pink.

“Seriously?” she squeaks. “I gotta know everything.”

He tells her, and she might get a little hot and bothered by the image of Steve being that turned on by a simple kiss from Bucky.

“He remembers, Darce. He doesn’t think he’s worthy of us. And he’s seen your picture,” he added, taking her hands in his. “He thinks you’re beautiful.”

“You’ll find him,” she states. “We’ll show him what he means to us.”

“We will.” He kisses her again, pressing her back into the mattress. She hopes he stays for a little longer before he goes back to looking for their other soul mate. His hands tangle in her hair, his mouth hot against her neck and she stops thinking for a while.

*~*~*~*~*~*

He watches Steve answer the phone. James is hidden in a nearby building, staring down at the man he just kissed. The sensation of the kiss made his body feel… alive. It sparks more memories, happy ones of a small and skinny Steve breathless and moaning under him. Of so much love and devotion it makes his heart ache with the want of it.

James shakes his head and pays attention. Steve is worried, the lines of his body stiff in tension. He says something; _‘Is she okay?’_ he reads from Steve’s lips. Darcy. Something is wrong with Darcy. He watches as Steve bolts from the alley, running as if the Devil himself were after him. James wants to follow, will follow, but not now. Steve has access to a helicopter; it will take time for James to make arrangements. But he will go to New York. He wants to see her, see the woman whose name is on the star.

The next morning the tabloids are full of lurid stories, accompanied by pictures of Darcy.

“CAPTAIN AMERICA’S SECRET GIRLFRIEND HOSPITALIZED” “IS SHE PREGNANT?” “CAPTAIN AMERICA RUSHES TO GIRLFRIENDS SIDE”

James just frowns, making his way to the air strip. He’s going back to New York. The one thing the media gets right is her location: she’s been rushed to a local hospital. He has a place to start looking for her. He’ll figure out a way to see her once he gets there and scopes the location. He tries to sleep on the private plane, but he can only cat nap. His mind races, other memories slotting into place. He thinks of pretending to be only into girls, dating one after another while he went home to Steve. He remembers a mark, on his inner left elbow-Steve’s name. The happy memories are outweighing the bad, for now, but he will take it.

A rush of feelings hit him when they pass over the Statue of Liberty. He took Steve there once, on a lark. The kid’s expression had been so full of wonder, he’d wanted to kiss Steve then and there. James breathes, tries to focus. When he lands he takes a cab to the block where the hospital is located. Traffic is everywhere, people going in and out constantly. There are news crews hanging around, reporters talking to each other, not really paying attention. He makes sure the arm is covered and sidles up to one.

“What’s going on?” he asks casually.

“Waiting for Captain America. He rushed in late last night. Rumor is his girlfriend is there, she went into labor.”

James just nods, thinking how ridiculous the notion is. Steve would have said something. He doesn’t think that knowing their joint soul mate is… was pregnant is something he’d forget to mention when James asked about her. He can’t go in now. It’s too dangerous. He’ll keep an eye out, watch for Steve. Then he will find a way in to see Darcy.

It takes most of the day and night, but finally Steve comes out. The reporters have gone, dispersed by some cops around suppertime. James has been wandering the park, remembering. He watches as Steve leaves, accompanied by two women –one tall and redheaded, the other tiny and brunette accompanied by a large blond man. He’s seen the tall one in magazines; she’s important. He tears his gaze away from them, looking at the entrance to the hospital.

He crosses the street, walking like he belongs. Confidence is everything when you want to blend in. He makes it inside and walks right past the reception desk, detouring into a hall. The person behind the desk doesn’t see him, so James relaxes some. He finds a map, studies it and makes a decision. He finds a closet, steals some scrubs and pulls them on over his regular clothes. He wears a long sleeved shirt under the top, disguising the arm. He sees a mop and bucket; those will help him. He pushes them along the hall, head down.

The doctors and nurses ignore him. He turns a corner and sees the nurses’ station. There is no one there. He isn’t sure how he got so lucky, but he doesn’t question it. Instead he rests the mop and bucket next to the desk, going behind it to use the computer. He finds her name; Darcy Lewis, room 107. He reclaims his props and heads down the hall. When he reaches the door, he sees it’s closed. He looks down the hall, seeing no one, so he opens the door. Quietly, he sneaks inside. He can see her lying there on the bed. His heart is pounding.

He uses all of his stealth abilities to creep over to the bed. He looks down at her. She is so god damn beautiful. She looks paler and he notices the bandage on her foot. She’s been hurt. His heart clenches at that thought. He gazes at the rest of her. He ghosts a hand over her form, tracing her curves. Her torso is uncovered, the gown’s sleeve rucked up. He lightly traces the name there; Steve Rogers. It’s shaped like the shield he remembers Steve carrying. A shield he vaguely remembers wielding.

She mutters in her sleep, a lightly murmured “Steve”. He voice is soft, a balm to his soul. She turns in her sleep, moving and settling onto her other side. His breath catches in his chest as he sees the other shoulder. His name. Or the name Steve called him. Bucky Barnes is etched there. It’s shaped like the star that her name is inscribed across on his own arm. He drops into the chair by the bed. Steve wasn’t lying when he’d said she had his name. This woman is his other soul mate. He has two.

A memory comes, of a wrist thrust under his nose with two names. _“No one gets two names at once!”_ He had one; now he has two. And she is one of them. He sits there thinking about it for hours. She tosses and turns in her sleep, but she doesn’t have nightmares. The sun starts to show through the small window and he stirs. His muscles ache and he stretches. He needs to leave. But before he goes, he leans over her, whispering a kiss over the mark that is his name. She stirs again, and murmurs, “Bucky”. He smiles, creeps back across the room to the door. A look out and up and down the hall and he’s out, grabbing the left behind mop and bucket. He doesn’t rest easy until he’s safely back out on the street.

She’s going to be okay. He feels… different. Happier. Maybe it’s time to stop running. Steve said he could help. James might just have to take him up on that offer.

*~*~*~*~*

Steve’s running down to a nearby bodega because Darcy is going crazy and wants ice-cream, a kind that JARVIS doesn’t stock in the common kitchen. He’s so grateful that she’s forgiven him, but he still has hope deep in his heart that she’ll say yes to Thor’s idea. He nods at Mr. Oswald behind the counter, before dashing back to the freezer section, looking for chocolate mocha chunk. He spots it and opens the door. An arm reaches out in front of him, snatching up the last carton. The arm is metal.

Steve turns around and finds himself crowded against the freezer by Bucky. Bucky who is holding out the carton to Steve, with a look that tears at Steve. He takes the carton and Bucky steps back.

“Thank you. Darcy… she wants this.”

Bucky nods, moving so Steve can get by him. He is looking at Steve, waiting for Steve to say something. Anything.

“Did you… why are you here?”

“I… I read your lips. Followed you. I… I needed, wanted to see her. Darcy.”

“Oh. You can see her now, if you want,” Steve offers. The hope flares in his chest, and it’s all he can do not to bounce with excitement like a kid at Christmas.

Bucky seems to think about that for a moment. “I did. I saw her. In the hospital, I saw… I saw her marks.”

“I’d love to show you mine,” Steve says. “And to see yours. Will you come with me? I’ll introduce you properly.”

Bucky just smiles, a small and tentative one. Steve jerks his head, gesturing for Bucky to follow. They pay for the ice cream, walking quickly back to the Tower. He makes Bucky carry the bag so he can pull out his phone. He sends a message to JARVIS to disable any alarms, stop the searching, to keep this news quiet for the moment. Right now Bucky will not need to be surrounded by the rest of the Avengers. JARVIS sends a message back saying there will be an elevator waiting to take them straight up to Steve’s room.

Bucky is only paying attention to him, keeping his eyes on Steve. He’s not distracted by the tower or JARVIS’s soft welcoming voice. He’s quiet and shifty as they go up, acting nervous. Steve has to pull him out of the car, into the hall and down to the room. He opens the door and ushers Bucky inside. He takes the bag from Bucky’s hand, putting the ice cream away in the freezer.

“Is that you, Steve? It’s about time. Did you forget what you were going for?” Darcy hobbles into the living room without her crutches. “Did you remember that I asked for – oh.” She stops when she sees Bucky.

“Darcy this is Bucky.  Bucky, this is Darcy, we’ve been waiting for you.”

Darcy makes her way forward, smiling gently. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Bucky.”

Bucky seems awed at the sight of her, at the moment that is happening. He slowly, tentatively reaches out for her left shoulder. His fingers ghost above where the mark of his name is. Steve smiles.

“I saw you,” Bucky says. “I saw the mark.”

“He followed because he saw me leave Bucharest. He went to visit you in the hospital,” Steve explains gently.

Darcy swallows at that and Steve can see the tears gathering in her eyes. “You must be tired. Would you like to rest?”

“Yes,” Bucky says.

Darcy offers him her hand and he takes it. They undress him a little, removing his coat and long sleeved Henley. The names are clearly visible on the metal arm. Darcy guides him down to lie on the bed, removing her own shirt to better reveal her marks. She lies down, gesturing for Bucky to follow. He lies down next to her, trembling. She smiles, curling up to him and tracing her name inside the star. Steve can see his own, surrounding it.

Steve lifts his own shirt off, turning. Darcy tells Bucky to look and Steve can hear the gasp as he sees the wings of their names. Steve lies down as well, feeling Bucky reach up to caress the marks. They lay in bed, just being there. He curls on the other side of Bucky, letting Bucky drift his human fingers along his own   name. His metal hand traces Darcy’s mark.

“Thank you,” Bucky says, voice filled with awe.

“We’re always going to be here for you, Buck,” Steve says.

Darcy presses herself closer so that Steve can reach across Bucky and touch her. “You’re here now, you’re safe.”

Bucky looks at them both. Steve kisses one cheek, while Darcy kisses the other. They fall asleep surrounding him, buffering him.

*~*~*~*~

When Darcy wakes up, Bucky is curled up behind Steve, his hand on Steve’s shoulder. She has her own hand on the red star that adorns his metal arm and carries his marks. She slips out of bed, taking a quick picture with her phone. She’ll get JARVIS to print it so it can be added to their collection that line every surface and wall of the living room.

She gets the coffee started and pulls her shirt back on before pulling out food. She looks in the fridge and realizes they’ll need more now that Bucky is here. If he was subjected to anything like the serum Steve took, he’ll eat just as much. She gets out the biggest skillet and puts an entire package of bacon in it, before starting to toast an entire loaf of bread.

She’s just starting the eggs when Steve wanders out, coaxing a nervous Bucky to follow him. She smiles at them both, stirring the eggs. Steve gets Bucky to sit at the table before coming around the counter to grab coffee mugs. He places a kiss on her shoulder as he walks by.

“It’s almost done,” she says. “Did you sleep well, Bucky?”

He flinches a little at the name, but nods. “Yes, thank you. No nightmares. That felt… good.”

“I’m glad. But even if you do have them, Steve and I are here to help you through them.”

He gives her a small smile and she just wants to hug him. She plates up food as Steve gets them coffee. They all sit and start to dig in.

“What made you decide to do this?” Steve asks, shoveling bacon into his mouth.

“I wanted us to be fueled up before we had that talk.” She sips her coffee. Her statement makes Steve stop eating, fork halfway to his lips. He sets it down, finishes chewing and swallows.

“Oh, have you… made a decision?”

Bucky’s looking between them, confused. “I can… should I?”

“You stay,” Darcy says. She gentles her voice, knowing this will be hard for him. “This concerns you too. I should start at the beginning. What do you remember happening when you were in the HYDRA camp during the war?”

“Experiments. I was… strapped to a table. Steve… he came for me. He was bigger,” Bucky says slowly, frowning.

“Zola,” Steve provides. “He was the one doing the things to you. We think… we think he gave you some form of the super soldier serum. The same stuff that made me bigger. It’s the only way you would have survived the fall from the train.”

Bucky whimpers. Darcy leans over to lay a hand on his shoulder. He looks at it, like he wasn’t expecting human contact.

“I dream about that; I fall. I see… I see your face,” he tells Steve. She can see that Steve is shaken by the revelation.

“We think that’s why you haven’t gotten older,” Darcy continues. “That and the….”

“The cold,” Bucky finishes for her. “Mission complete. Fuel, wipe, freeze. Standard operating procedure for the asset.”

Steve is out of his chair then, kneeling in front of Bucky. He takes Bucky’s hands. “Never again, Buck. Never again.”

Bucky nods, turning to look at Darcy. He wants her to go on.

“Anyway, with the serum, you and Steve… you won’t age. And the idiot over there thought it would be a good idea to try and break up with me because of it.”

“Why?” Bucky looks back at Steve, frowning more. “Why? You… you love her. She’s your soul mate. My soul mate.”

“Because I was stupid and foolish,” Steve answers with a wry grin. “But our friend Thor offered us a solution. There is something that Darcy can take to make her not age, like us. We could stay together for a very long time.”

“I want that.” Bucky sounds very eager when he says this. His eyes light up and he looks so much younger. “I… I’ve never...,” he shakes his head in frustration. “I wanted to deserve you. That’s why I ran. I think… I know I can work on that, with both of you. If you’ll let me.”

Darcy feels her heart ache, so full of love and compassion for this man she barely knows. “I will, Bucky, I will. We both will. I’m going to do it. I’m telling Thor later.”

Steve looks up at her, face as bright as Bucky’s. “Thank you,” he says. “I love you, Darce.” He gets up from the floor and moves to kiss her. She frames his face with her hands, returning the kiss. When he moves away, she looks over to Bucky. She gets out of her chair and goes to him. She moves into his space.

He trembles, but he doesn’t move. She leans over him, pressing a gentle kiss to his mouth. His hand comes up to tangle in her hair. His lips are soft and warm. He pulls her closer, but she lays a hand on his chest. He pulls back, looking disappointed.

“We should get your head on straight before we do any more than that,” she says, smiling.

“Yes-I want help,” Bucky says.

“Right now, finish your breakfast.” Darcy returns to her seat. The rest of the meal is quiet.

*~*~*~*~*~*

He spends the first week in their room, just getting to know Steve and Darcy. Darcy is everything Steve said she was and more. She is kind and patient with him, even when he can’t remember. They both hold him through his nightmares. He even watches as Darcy helps Steve through one. He cannot believe that they are his soul mates. He wants to be worthy of their love. He wants to remember what it was like to love.

“You should just let yourself experience it,” Darcy tells him. “Make it feel like it’s the first time.”

With her, it is. But he is also remembering his time with Steve from before. They were so happy, even when they didn’t have much. He is thankful that Steve is different now, no longer suffering from the various ailments he had back when he was smaller. He always feels more… human when he’s around Steve and Darcy.

But it’s the blank moments that worry him the most. He still finds himself in places, not remembering how he got there. One of those times he wakes in the communal kitchen, on the floor. Next to his head is a knife. Sitting in a chair at the table is the redheaded woman from the street, the one he remembers from Minsk.

“You are getting sloppy, Yasha,” she says calmly, sharpening her own knife.

“I’m not… that’s not me,” he says, pushing himself up, ignoring the weapon on the floor.

She smiles wryly at him. “Yet it would seem that part of you is still him. You haven’t aged a day.”

“You have, Natalia. Not so young anymore,” he says. She grins.

“No, but I haven’t forgotten what you taught me. Go back - Steve or Darcy will be looking for you. Tell them about these episodes.”

He nods, leaving her with her knife.

It has been almost a year since he first heard the name Bucky and he feels like maybe that is him now. He’s long since abandoned James. Darcy calls him that when she’s frustrated, but he doesn’t mind. He did as Natalia - Natasha now - had suggested; he told them of his episodes. Steve and Darcy got him some of the best help Tony’s money could buy. He hasn’t had a blank spell in six months. He doesn’t for a second think that the part of him that is - was - the Winter Soldier is completely gone. He can still feel it in the back of his mind, there when he practices on the range.

During his second month back, it is leaked that he’s in New York. Congress subpoenas him, wanting to know everything about HYDRA. There is even rumor that he’ll be charged with all of the assassinations he committed while under their control. Steve is livid. He marches into the room, where they are expecting Bucky and gives them hell.

“Captain Rogers, you were not called to appear before this committee,” one Senator says.

“No, but I am here to speak on behalf of James Buchanan Barnes. He is no villain.” Bucky and Darcy watch from home. Steve is all righteous anger and patriotism standing there in the uniform.

The Senator scoffs. “He killed people, Captain. Not even you can deny that.”

“He did, but he was not in his right mind. HYDRA took him, brainwashed him and reprogrammed him into a machine, a tool to do their bidding. I will not have you sit there and tell me Bucky is responsible. He is getting help now. He knows nothing about HYDRA. Everything there is to know is out there already and you have me to thank for that.”

“Captain, we know that Sergeant Barnes is your friend….”

Steve grins menacingly at that. “He’s more than that, Senator. His name is on my skin, and mine is on his. I dare you to try anything.”

The charges are dropped and the hearings shut down after that.

Now Bucky feels almost whole again. He knows that he is worthy of them now. He wants to tell them how he feels. He has known it in his heart for a while. They are his, he is theirs. He wants to be with them. He knows that Steve and Darcy haven’t been celibate all this time; that they’ve tried to be discrete while he got better. He’s better now.

There is a party for Darcy’s birthday. He knows exactly what her present, and Steve’s, is going to be. He waits, watching as she laughs and smiles. Steve is right there with her, smiling at him from across the room. Bucky is still a little uncomfortable around the rest of the Avengers. But he likes them.

He sees Thor slip a small package into Darcy’s hand, whispering in her ear. It’s the potion that will extend her life. He’s happy she has it, that she’ll take it. He can’t imagine living for as long as he and Steve will without her by their side. She is their anchor, their touchstone.

There is dancing. He whirls Darcy around the floor for a jive, laughing as she spins in his arms. He watches as she guides Steve carefully through a waltz. Punk still hasn’t learned how to dance. Then they both come over to get something to drink. The rest of the partygoers aren’t watching. Now is a good time.

“You should come dance with us, both of us,” Darcy says, gulping down some water.

“Nah, I’m good, doll. One dance was enough for me.”

“But you didn’t get me a present,” she whines. “Don’t think I didn’t notice.”

“Was waiting for the right time to give it to you,” he smiles, feeling confident.

“You gotta give it to her now, Buck, you know how impatient she gets,” Steve stands behind Darcy, grinning.

Bucky smiles, standing. “I do. It’s really a present for both of you.” He takes a breath, looking at each of them in turn before he says it. “I love you. Both of you.”

Darcy presses her hands to her heart. Steve’s face lights up. Bucky feels so light, like he could float away. He grins then, reaching for them both. He tugs them away from the party, towards the elevator.

“Buck, are you sure?” Steve says, hand on his shoulder as they enter the car.

“Stevie, if you don’t let me fuck both of you tonight, I’m gonna kill something.”

Darcy whimpers at his side, pulling him down to kiss her. He lifts her up, pressing her into the wall, Steve is right up behind him, kissing at his neck. He pushes back against Steve, feeling Steve’s erection pressing into his ass. He wants them both so much.

The elevator dings and they all stumble out of it. Bucky is carrying Darcy as she kisses him. Steve gets ahead of them, opening the door to let them in. Bucky heads straight back for the bedroom. He hears the door slam behind him, sees Steve come back. He drops Darcy onto the bed and Steve grabs for him, kissing him like there’s no tomorrow.

“God, you two…,” Darcy moans. She’s stripping off her clothes, hurrying to get naked. Bucky and Steve undress each other slowly, sense memory taking over. Bucky trails fingers down Steve’s chest, mapping every muscle he’s never seen before.

“Buck, look at our girl,” Steve whispers, voice rough. “She wants you so bad. It is her birthday, she should get her present.”

Bucky looks over, Darcy is watching them. Her fingers are dipping into her pussy, trailing over her folds. Her tongue licks her lips. She takes her fingers out, offering them to him.

“Darce, you’re gonna be the death of me,” he groans, moving over to her, sucking her fingers into his mouth. “Gonna make you scream.”

“Good thing the walls are soundproofed,” she grins.

He reaches for the nightstand, where he knows the condoms are. Steve already got there and hands him one before going back for the lube. He gives Bucky a wicked grin.

“The lady is waiting, Sergeant; get to it,” he says, taking a condom for himself.

“Yes, Captain.” He moves between Darcy’s legs, opening the condom. She plucks it from his fingers, rolling it on. “Fuck, Darce,” he groans. “I need to be inside you.”

“Yes, Bucky, please,” she croons, opening her legs wider, pulling him forward with a foot hooked behind his ass.

He pushes into her slowly, gasping at the sensation. So warm, so slick. He leans down to kiss her, pressing into her until he’s all the way in. He lies there, kissing her until he feels Steve move in behind him. Steve kisses at his neck, breath warm along Bucky’s spine.

“Darcy, I hope you don’t mind if he doesn’t move for a minute, but I need to prep him,” Steve says nonchalantly over Bucky’s shoulder.

“No, I’m good here,” she replies, flexing her inner muscles, causing Bucky to curse.

“Fuck! Hurry the fuck up, Stevie. I need to move,” he pants.

He hears the click of the lube being opened up. He feels the coolness of it as Steve presses a finger into him, slowly but surely. He tries to push back onto it, but Steve uses his other hand to hold Bucky still. Darcy grins up wickedly at him, squeezing him.

“Happy birthday to me,” she says.

“Why did I decide to do this?” he groans as Steve adds a second finger, brushing them against his prostate.

“Because you love us,” Steve breathes against his back, adding a third.

Bucky is so desperate with want and need. He whines when Steve pulls his fingers out.

“We’re gonna treat you right, Bucky,” Darcy says, hands trailing up his chest.

He hears the crinkle of the condom being opened. He tries to look over his shoulder, to watch as Steve rolls it on, but Darcy pulls him into another kiss. Then Steve is pressing into him, holding him still. Bucky whines, wanting to push back against him. He wants to move, needs to move, but his lovers are holding him there.

“God, Buck, you feel so good,” Steve drapes himself against Bucky. “Gonna move now, need you to move with me. We wanna treat our Darcy right.”

“Fuck, yes, Stevie, move now.”

Steve moves out and Bucky pushes back against him, pulling out of Darcy. They get a rhythm going soon, Bucky working himself between his two lovers, his loves, his soul mates. He brings Darcy to orgasm, hearing her scream his name as she writhes under him. He’s so damn close, but he wants to hear her do that again.

“Darce, sweetheart, gonna fuck you good now, can you take it?” he asks, moaning as Steve pushes back into him.

“Buck, god, yes, please, wanna feel you, want to see you come. You look so good, getting fucked by Steve.”

“He feels good, baby,” Steve says. “Wanna hear him shout?”

“Please,” she rasps, rolling her hips, taking Bucky in again.

Bucky loses himself in them. He pushes into Darcy over and over, clutching at her hips. Steve grabs one of his, pounding into him. Darcy comes again, wailing and clenching at him. He shudders, reaching his peak and shouting as Steve continues to fuck him. Darcy strokes his hair as Steve thrusts a few more times, making Bucky whimper. He stills, and Bucky feels him come, shuddering under him.

He slips out of Darcy, collapsing onto the bed. Steve kisses his neck, Darcy cuddles up to him. Steve pulls out slowly. He reaches around and peels the condom off Bucky carefully before dealing with his own. They are a tangle of limbs as they lie there.

“Jesus, I think I lost my brain there somewhere,” he says, panting for air.

“When can we do it again?” Darcy grins, pressing a kiss to his lips.

“Gotta gimme a minute sweetheart.”

“All the time in the world, Buck.” Steve pulls him over for a kiss of his own.

“Love you, Steve,” he says, turning back to Darcy. “Love you, Darce.”

“Love you, Bucky,” they say together, holding him close.

*~*~*~*~*

Modern governments struggle to keep up with the ever changing nature of the soul marks. Gay marriage was widely acknowledged by the late ‘80s, with only a few countries not recognizing the legality of such unions. Polyamorous relationship have proven harder to be recognized. It wasn’t until 2002 that some states allowed three or more people to enter into a legal union.

Laws are ever changing and passing. Most confusing and hard to pass are tax laws governing who people can recognize as dependents. Still proponents of marriage laws feel it won’t be long before polyamorous relationships are afforded the same status as others. The anti-soul mark movement is quiet on this subject. It seems that no matter your opinion of the marks, love is love.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Steve is the one to design the ring. It’s a ruby star encircled by sapphires and diamonds. Bucky is the one to actually ask her.

“Wanna tie yourself to us, Darce?” he asks, holding the ring out to her hopefully.

Steve blusters about romance but she says yes, pulling them both into a happy hug. They’ve been together for two years now. The ceremony itself is small, friends and family only. Thor gives her away, and Jane is her matron of honor even though Jane’s ready to give birth any moment now. Tony does the officiating.

“So, Lewis, you take these two mooks to be your lawfully wedded husbands? With all the Avenging and snark and forties slang that implies?” he asks.

“I do,” Darcy replies, grinning at her two men.

“And you, Rogers, do you take these two to be your lawfully wedded husband and wife? With all the banter and therapy and fighting that implies?”

“I do,” Steve says, his voice echoing through the room.

“Finally, do you, Barnes, take these two to be your lawfully wedded husband and wife? With all the sex and patriotism and pop culture that implies?”

“I do,” Bucky says, voice catching with emotion.

Tony grins. “Great! With the power invested in me by the great state of New York, I now pronounce you husband, wife and husband. Kiss already.”

They all laugh as they exchange kisses. They dance down the aisle, cameras snapping them smiling and laughing. One of those photos somehow ends up on the cover of the tabloids. It’s Darcy flanked by Steve and Bucky, each of them grinning at each other, ignoring everyone else. The headlines are priceless.

“HEROES WED THEIR SOUL MATE” “WILL A SUPER BABY BE FAR BEHIND?”

There will be plenty of time for kids. Right now the three of them want to enjoy each other. They are together, and nothing else matters.

**Author's Note:**

> While this story marks the end of this journey, it is not the end of the series. There are going to be more fics, about the other Avengers and their soul marks. I hope you come by and read them.


End file.
